sun baked poetry in the wild

salsa colada politica y cultura

2012-02-17T12:24:00.000-08:00

Puerto Rico
In your shores
You welcomed people of all colors
Young and old, black, brown, de color, Moreno, mulato, prieto, indio, negrito, blanco and mocha
Mixed like your famous original piña colada
Laced by your magical landscapes of many hues of green and blue
I fell in love, with your natural beauty, white sand beaches and to your people too
It’s not only about the salsa hips, but the warmth and community in the streets
I feel the solidarity of all colors, the love and passion in the tropical heat

I learned from your history
That you like to live in a four story house
A room for Africans, Spanish, other Europeans, and North Americans
But then an attic is added, for our dear Dominicans
A metaphor of your ancestry that amused me
Maybe not as complicated as your reality
How migration and slavery fertilized your soil
From the blood spilt by Columbus until the conquest of Spain
How can your people survived, war, slavery, invasion, disease
Wiped out by a foreign disease, how many lived and died
Only the colors of the skin survived
It is now a living legacy that will tell us your ancestry

I see masks of the past and many different masks we wear today
Like the Old San Juan of affluence and beauty
Captivated my soul for its colors, architecture and panorama
Though haunting of the bitter sweet embrace of the past and now love affair with America
Where a Spanish armada made you a stockpile of cannons
And a little stop over for siesta
Sold for a few thousand silvers, you become an object of America

How can busy streets felt like a ghost town of tourists
I heard people are no longer able to afford to live in such places
Where they used to have open barbeques and open doors
For people walking the streets and you know all your neighbors
Now a law defeated them from living in their own houses
Lined up is a sad picture of signature stores that has nothing to do with Puerto Rico
Shall you live for more strangers to drive you away from your living spaces
But I cannot go away empty of happy memories
The sensual memory of tres leches and mofonggo
Are those times I got pregnant with experiences a new

But I heard you have been confused
Some people think you have sold yourself for a cheap price
Maybe too much chicaito some people lost their consciousness
What happens when memories fade away?
What happens when the island is weak but obey?
What happens when people wants independence but ‘nada’ say
What happens when you are no longer America , let’s see
Are you ready, to be free?
Shall we dance some more salsa to drive away colonial clichés
Shall we hop to bomba till we get rid of political foreplay
Shall we dig into Macha Colon or listen to the regaeton ‘till we are back to reality

Why are there people having cha-cha with police in your streets?
I was amazed by your young activists, students and artists
They are grown ups faster than the generation ahead of them
How fearless and now stands on their own
Is this the blood of Puerto Rican, Buricua in spirit
That shall rejoice multi-race identity between two flags with merit?
Shall you shout Long live PRUSA?

Oh rich land of a thousand blessings
Revered as the sparkling Spanish virgin islands
you make people stay for it is hard to go away
Enchanted forest listen to the long lost voice of your Tahino people
I shall come closer to listen, learn and in your arms shall I cradle

I heard your people speak in many voices
Language so sweet, but have no use for mascarera Deborah Hunt
For she lets the masks speak loud for freedom
Did you see her in the street or store windows?
She never stops to create so women have a voice against violence
In her masks all archetypes come alive from the mystic to detective
Madwoman, anxious, comic, shamanic then she is healed
With mask work she reminds us “better to be big so the other person can see it”

I am speechless, when I found a haven in Ponce where colors blends with garden and sky
Only a man with a superfluous visions and a mind advance of his time
Shall speak in lines, colors, texts, sculpture, steels, concretes and stones
Inanimate things come alive for they become extensions of his soul
Survived and reincarnated from the ashes of his own creations
Renewed his spirits and used the past as his new narrative
But he has words written in sumptuous poetry that tells about his family, childhood and memories
A metamorphosis of all mediums that gave us all kinds of perspective of art forms
He is never finished and starts on a new series of political statements
“when is a sketch a final drawing, when is a drawing a sketch”
The tireless Antonio Martorell speaks of “drawings as narration without the words”

One afternoon we met Maricha Perez and the Jovenes de ’98 for a quick exchange of ideas as starter
A youth-based street theater inspired by Theater of the oppressed practicioner
Boal games are never old fashioned with a few more twists and additions
Together we created powerful images and gained a new sense of connections

Then little puppets emerged from the sea of manual animation
Shows original works of Teatro y no habia luz
That has combined clowns, masks, music, film, animation and puppets
A room of young people gave us the experience of how objects are manipulated
According to Julio, there are three things that can give life to an object
Have a relationship with the object, learn manipulation and transformation of the object
Then theater is born from a wooden stick
It told the story of birth, childhood, teen-age and adult life, old age
How easy, crazy and funny we all tried tested and think of the unfamiliar, unusual and out of the box
Aside from rain and sun, i did more than fun like eat in the streets and smelled the markets
I guess it all makes sense that we paid our way to live in a posh hotel
Swing in hammocks and lie in the sun in between beach volleyballs
Tested our comfort zones as we have both worlds
Of fantasy and reality

Oh adios Puerto Rico mi amor
I shall long to be back in your shores
With a friend, a lover or a stranger
I shall let this memory grow in my heart
As I continue to dance salsa and lost myself in your street beat
Until the next time I see you again, we remain familiar, dear and sweet.

Prison

2012-02-17T12:22:00.001-08:00

When I entered your door
I thought you were hardcore
But when I look at you
It is not true
I saw eyes more free than mine
I hear a mind seasoned serving your time
I feel compassion for giving a moment to the victims of the crime
I feel freedom in the words you spoke about justice, equality and Divine
I see hope when the man is willing to change
I see light by the end of the tunnel not shame
I see love when families and communities come and show care
I see change when you put ideas into action, my fear disappear
I learned you are not so different from me
I know freedom is a luxury with a huge price to pay
Outside your walls, life is not free, in everything I need to pay
I hear you when you speak the words of the free

love is terrible

2012-02-17T10:06:00.000-08:00

love is terrible
love is
expensive phonebills
passionate stiff necks
imaginary kisses
an adrenalin rush
a sensational decision
outlandish fears
boundless sensitivities
paralyzing sleepless nights
agonizing expectations
a doubtful mother-in-law
dangerous insecurities
an intrusive intimacy
a suffocating individuality
budgetary restrictions
a spontaneous explosion
a gratifying garbage
an emotional devil
a delicious poison

a painful truth
a selfless death
a constant passionate argument
an enduring deep friendship
a seasoned spiritual love
a self-evaluating journey
the mirror of one’s soul
a life-giving drama
love is
love

Tenzing

2008-12-31T21:11:00.001-08:00

in his Tibetan prayer chants
reinvented the treehouse energy
extending the ancient Tibetan
tradition
handed down by the great minds
for
more than 2000 years of devotion
brought with him a gift of
compassion
a gentle soul crowned with long
fluffy black hair that reminds me
of a Mongol emperor
in his eyes a falcon spirit
come alive
gifted with throat of a
thousand melodies
coming from a diverse religion
in a Buddhist community
where as a child
became a friend
of the tallest mountain that
paints itself the great confluence
of the moonrise and a sunset
in the Darjeeling sky

a man in exile
from the lineage of the
Rempoches
has set foot in the island
born of fire
to reaffirm the connection
of man and the Divine

soni's bus stop

2008-01-12T18:35:00.000-08:00

The snow has arrived

The package for a lover

Has to stay

In the land of snow

In honor of the white magical rain

Shall the bus find my way home

Longing for a love

Nailed to a man's military training

Cold and subhuman

Where one just need a memory of a fish

To survive a cold winter

In a prison of no emotion

The snow has finished another season

When love demands certain sacrifices

Change of nationality

And change of passport

To win the sympathy

Of a new family

How much a woman

Shall sacrifice

To a great love

A story so bitter and sweet

A love so deep

The bus has arrived

It's the season to love

To loose a package

To win new friends

To see snowfall

To find my way home

Snow flower (Nun kut)

2008-01-12T18:31:00.000-08:00

I see my first snow mountain
In a fairy tale morning
Just like back to Narnia
Driving through the highway of snow flowers
Trees of the winter land
Melted my heart
After an early morning honey ginger sip
How can I ever forget this ride
With violin music on my side

Now winter is no longer a strange thing
Just like in books or movies
When I touched the white earth blanket
As I sat watching the snowfall
Like flying angel flakes
By the glass window
Melts in my hand
For it belongs to the sky

In the land of the cold
Orange sunset was hard to catch
Hiding behind trees
Then for a second
The magic moment
Revealed a perfect catch
The sky poured its blessings to the land

Overlooking the Yeongju lake (ho)
My hands are frozen with a snow fight
A hundreds of years old game
Makes my adrenalin rush
By the snow topped rock (ak) mountain (san)
Alongside the frozen river

I am no longer a stranger
To a land of winter
Christmas full with silver moon
where I have real people
And real friends
Keeping me warm

I shall never forget
That you made feel loved
That you drive me through frozen lakes and white highways
That you made me taste oding, mandu, chike, chapsi, bibimpap
How can I ever say thank you
With all these sweet memory in your land

My memory frozen like the crystal river
I keep sacred
I shall treasure the deep travel
We shared
In this journey
Back to our roots
Where there are no boundaries
And no borders

nami magic

2008-01-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

In this dreamlike island
Of lovers and golden trees
Makes my heart grow flowers in winter
Where ground turns red
And leaves turn yellow
Beautiful minds of people
Rekindle my own passion
Marked my new birth
To a country I now find my new home

I leave with a renewed spirit
I painted all your dreams
In my life's canvass
For you are the hands
That make life's picture magical

But all these efforts shall die in winter
If we cannot live what we say
If we cannot walk our talk
If we stop believing in our dreams
I send you the fire in my heart
So winters will remind you
Of our being together

fat, bald and ugly

2008-01-12T18:27:00.000-08:00

if love makes you write
then maybe its a good thing
wanting so much
you might as well get it
how easy for you to love
but i don't want to be bald, fat and ugly
i want to be happy

distance

2008-01-12T18:23:00.000-08:00

i am overwhelmed with many things around me
wanting to do so much in one lifetime
i want to give more time for love
i do not doubt your love
i wish you can share my life
my island has nourished me again with so much good sunsets and sunrises
my life here is so colourful and wonderful
i enjoyed my friends visiting coming and going
in and out of the waterfalls, coral reefs, cold and hot springs
this is how i can live my solitary life in the island
it makes me survive day by day
i wish you can nourish me more with your letters, thoughts
i need to feel your love
maybe you can practice writing more letters...
but im worried i cant even hold your hand

thank you betsy

2007-06-04T07:42:00.001-07:00

you do not know
how much it meant to me
for keeping me in your roof
and tucking me in your bed
you do not know
how much it healed me
for showing me your heleconias
for showing me the cosmos
and for making me feel beautiful
you do not know
how much it made me feel loved
when you love me in my darkest hour
when you trusted me as an old friend
when you showed me
how to fully give and love
you do not know
how it strengthened me
to see your courage and self determintation
that made me hope
for a healthier lifetime
after lifetime
i can only love you more
and wish i can give you
my breathe of life
and love of colours
to heal you completely
god is the only space between us
beauty surrounds us
then life is worth living
for i have known
wonderful souls and spirits
like you
thank you

sacred ritual

2007-06-04T07:39:00.000-07:00

in the intricate
magnificent web of circumstances
the rose stay in the center
as the great experiencer
that can never stop dreaming
weaving,
untangling,
creating,
knotting,
connecting,
recreating,
defining,
emerging,
designing,
activating,
all sorts of sensations
perceptions,
aspirations, and
doubts,
misconceptions
to learn and relearn
the art of
purifying oneself
my life
is a
sacred ritual

understanding my wounds

2007-06-04T07:38:00.000-07:00

in my little corner
my spirit is blocked
by incoherence
of the uncertainties
my life created a void
black holes of suppressed energies
something is dying
inside me
soon i have to mourn
and let go
of dead cells
bury my shadows
mount my mask
in the portrait of the past

my soul is tired
weary and lost
i feel numb, indifferent,
irritable
the fire is fading
i am over flooded by
many tasks and expectations
but despite these all
life is kinder
nurturing and challenging
life is good
the pains bring me back
the pulse
to live

the inner child

2007-06-04T07:37:00.000-07:00

insecure…
naïve…
distant…
guilt…
cold..
as a child
i am a sensitive observer but quiet
in my shyness i kept my little secret
i am not aware of anger, regrets
nor indifference then
in time a confused guilt grew
my young reason does not know
of my prejudice
and was restricted
to dress in exuberance
which often is a non-verbal language
of an innocent child
i lost the spontaneity and candidness
which connects the child
with the dragonflies
the space was wide
and open spaces
welcoming
as i chase the flight
of grasshoppers
armed with a slipper in one hand
i hop from one place to the other
to catch a green hopper
i come to realize
it was a way of the universe
communicating with a child like me
that childhood
was a way to open one’s heart
to the joy and enchantment of the world around
it is the spirit
that free the mind
with the power of
innocence

Affirmations

2007-06-04T07:35:00.000-07:00

the life i play
is god’s play
a game with no conditions
a relationship
of no expectations
as graceful as a butterfly dance
as colourful as the rainbow
as succulent as the morning dew
as giving as the waterfalls
as passionate as the sun
my beloved sits with me in silence
walks with me up the mountain
embraces me from sunrise
to sunset
whispers in the wind and
in the trickles of rain

i am safe where i am
everything is bound to change
i come lifetime after lifetime
this life is not meant to be ordinary
i walked the path
as i choose to manifest
my highest potential
here and how
my purpose of taking
yet another body
is to free the soul
so i can taste all textures of life
for this existence
is about the mastery
of the great celestial arts
i am born again in a body
to honor my being
the great manifestation of the divine plan
the miracle of god
in the making of a gift
to life…

Divine Ritual

2007-06-04T07:34:00.000-07:00

one day i come to face myself again
i am bound for a journey
within and without
the gatherer of experiences
that are woven in god’s wisdom
i can only manifest my real purpose
if i learn to truly love myself

my needs are no longer valid, for an adult is such a child in many ways… when i grow up i want to be a child….

i am unlimited in my senses
where i can truly experience
the divine
in the most ordinary circumstances

reltionships come as god’s camouflage, to bring out my spiritual child…

only in my most silent moment i find god in the sacred circle where no one can enter…

god speaks to me in all kinds of languages… i am god’s channel to extend love and creativity to discover one’s true self… the beloved moves around life’s playground in a dance… beyond circumstances…

Godlight

2007-06-04T07:33:00.000-07:00

oh great child of the wild
explorer of the mounds of the earth
a toy of the sea
visitor of the forest
spectator of the sunrise
dragonfly catcher
rise to your feet
gather your roots
collect your inner strength
walk deep to your dreams
hold the desires of your heart
offer it to the first day light
for the power of Godlight
shall purify your life
as god manifests its powers
in everyday chores
so the shadow shall carry with it
fears and convulsions and
deep rooted addictions
i am a friend of my female shadow
as i begin to slowly appreciate
to restore sweetness and gentleness
warmth and gracefulness
i become the playmate of my male shadow
as i slowly bring out
the wise warrior
that carried with it the amulet
of determination and courage
to face
the darkest fears and disenchantments
it shall keep the focus of my life
and bring me back to the lap of the beloved
the eclipse of the shadow
shall guide me to the path
chosen by the deities
protected by the goddesses

SMOOTH RIVER FERN

2007-05-31T10:32:00.000-07:00

I look
and look again
at little miracles
bigger than life
close up
bold
sharp
only a camera can capture
a string is pulled
in my heart
it starts to sing
a familiar tune
the one that calms the dead river
below the canopy of finger ferns
curled up like a baby leaf
fragile yet intense
every line
completes the perfect geometry
of the flower of life
seasoned by the sun
colored by the sky
nurtured by the moon
nourished by the earth
breathes the atom of the wind
in my mind
each bud
each stalk
each flower
blooms
and expands to the infinite space
that connects
each hairline
each follicle
each stomata
each filament
each petal
to the cosmos
eternal
and divine
for the finger fern
knows the language of the stars
it follows the rhythm of the tides
it raptures when its ripe
it droops when its night
it tilts its face in summer towards the sun
it frees it seeds in spring
it wilts when its time
to fertilize the earth
it makes every inch of growth
a miracle
then it reminds me
that life is bigger
than what I see

long wait...

2007-05-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

if life is about waiting
wait
waiting
to die
what happens in between
the white and non white
shadows following
non existence
indifference
non partisan
"deadmama"
till the body turn to dust
powdered by a shredder
finally becomes useful fertilizer
as the unknown hero
then i have done for a country
which gave me extreme joy and sorrow
which made me complete
dialectic
worm and the guava
come full circle
transformed
becomes new
for life as a Filipino
is not only about waiting
for the false promises to be done
by the phantoms of the congress and senate
but for life to unfold
in the streets
where most of us belong
homeless
jobless
paid less
loveless
landless
hopeless
but odds of life CAN'T beat us
a Filipino is born NOT to be defeated
but to thrive as world class artisans and workforce
the epicenter of civilized powerplay
the crucifixion of the weak
but this nation has evolved
risen from ashes
to shine over discrimination
to brush off indifference over a denied VISA
to laugh at idiosyncrasies
to master the art of poverty and innovation
to strengthen the resolve of a hungry stomach
I am waiting
for life to unfold
I know the sun is going to shine for another day
I am waiting
I know my lover is going to go away
I am waiting
I know life is going to fade away
I'm waiting

Sculpting a human being

2007-03-01T02:42:00.000-08:00

I chose the hand
Holding my hand
This moment
I love not knowing
Nor ignoring what there is
To love
I am bound to someone
Who attracted me the way
I am

I journey the path
Marked in your blueprint
My fears no longer haunt me
I began to understand
The faith that I have lost
I am no longer afraid to be happy

I have been prepared for this moment
I have waited, waited
Tried and tried
Risked even my heart and life
Now that I found you
I bound myself
To be sculpted
Just like my work of stone
They stay still
Poignant, puzzled and carefree
I let the hands of the artist
Sculpt the hard corners
Change the stars of my destiny
And mount the lines in my hand
So that my heart line
Crosses yours and join you
Sculpt a human being
With the chisel of love

The rough edges shall smoothen
Washed by rain and bathed in sun
Life moves on
Shaped by circumstance
That made me grateful
This lifetime

Sacred Ritual

2007-03-01T02:41:00.000-08:00

Leave me alone
I’m growing another tooth
so that I can be wiser
to swallow
contradicting predicaments
then I may know
that being myself makes a
difference
I’m secure
with this moment of gladness
where I can create
my destiny
for I extend God’s love
through my creativity
the council of great minds
helped me defined my
life’s mission
prior to my incarnation
this lifetime is another chapter
to master the celestial arts
my first step on this earth
is the start of a sacred ritual
every spoken word is a prayer
every moment is a mindful
connection
with the divine elements
an extension of God’s force
that connects all

Incarnation: The Great Dance

2007-03-01T02:40:00.000-08:00

dreams come true
it happens
when the dreamer is
awake…
great stories are told
some tell their stories
when they feel great
I will tell you mine
anyway
thirty years in the making
I have only one story to tell
my own work of art
my life story…
my oral gratificatory activities
I have invited all of you
my great friends
for one reason
I want to tell you my secrets
that after having made friends
with all of you
I have no secret left to tell
it is my great pride
to be protected in this circle
of friendship
I invoke upon us
grace and wisdom
love and truth
gentleness and kindness
creativity and joy
simplicity and abundance
I returned to earth
on the fourth day
of the tenth month

Baile Agriqua

2007-03-01T02:37:00.000-08:00

A generation of predecessors,
Mentors and ancestors
Created a bond
Where one’s extraordinary fortune
Is to be surrounded by
Mindful individuals
That is no smaller than the
Embrace of God
It is a sacred dance of dreams
A baile of determined spirits
As the humbled kneel down
Before each one
Anointing each with
Blessed oil
As one honors the co-creators
And the value the divinity of being
Each touch is a gesture of
Love and forgiveness
As we work together
And walk the path
Closer to our hearts
As we weave and sew together
The meaningful tapestry
Of our great story
That we can leave behind
As we leave behind
As we heal ourselves
And better our lives
And lives of others…

Split Seconds

2007-03-01T02:36:00.001-08:00

My poems have passed me by…
Thoughts fly like the wind
I give birth to them in a split
And one moment I am dumb
Cannot breath
Suffocated
Words evaporate before I can
Conceive

Let the star record the moments
When life is empty of happy
Thoughts
It is when resistance stabs the
Expectations
Throwing stones at oneself in the
Mirror

I am the friend of joy
I sing amidst embarrassment
I laugh at lousy moments
I carry with me a candid
Countenance
That animates even the visiting
Butterfly
I sit with grace
I eat with gratitude
I walk with love

Alaya

2007-03-01T02:30:00.000-08:00

Alaya the beautiful man
The guardian of sacred temples
Brought with him
The passion of a traveler
That led his feet
To ancient civilizations
Opened his heart
To holy and divine practice
Of mastering the self

Alaya gave birth to a name
Inspired by a vision of an angel
On a rooftop
In his new person
The spirit inside
The colorful fisherman’s pants
Investigated every religion
Joined various satsangs
Visited unchartered roadmaps
Studied the great teachings
That may not be taught in schools
Circumnavigated the world
Exhausted his resources
Mated beautiful women
And developed his confidence
In life
As he trained with dedication
In arnis martial arts

For it takes a man
To be grounded in all experiences
To master even the art of bargaining
Devour a bowl of salad for dinner
Fall in love with a cebuana
Play with night sea-bubbles
Like living beings
Sit in a banca afloat offshore
As an avid spectator
Of a live canvass of sunsets

For it takes a fully realized man
To care to listen to visa stories
To laugh at poems of nothingness
And learn to cook mong dal in
Coconut water
And eat guacamole.

Isabelle

2006-12-09T21:45:00.001-08:00

Hush! Hush!
Sweet innocent soul
Grow… grow…
Open your heart
And listen to the songs of the forest
Look up and watch the rainbows fade
In the horizon
And relish the dance of the clouds on
Tops of the hills
Let the blue moon bring magic spell
As your birthday number added in one
Seven spirits may guide you

Our heart dance in joy
Welcoming you back
In the year of the bunny
The horn of Aries flickered
To the first wail you made
Bringing a new flavor to such
A famous name
The river awaits you candid playful plunge
The waves in the seashore will remind
You of your first home
Inside your mother’s womb
The rain shall show you life’s blessings
and bounty
the earth shall make you connected to
one purpose
the wind will whisper the wisdom of
great minds
Mountains bear witness to the love
Shared since the beginning
That created you into flesh…
Valleys opens up to your sweet smell
The sun longing to touch a new born
Awakens the gods and goddesses
And tickle the daydreams of an April fool

Life will never be the same again
And delightful difference…
Let my hands extend my love
Let the holy water purify you
And let God be your light
As you take the first step
And manifest the great journey of life…

Love Life

2006-12-09T21:45:00.000-08:00

There is angst in the air
Uncertainty is what the heart feels
Crying inside, raining outside
The music keeps on trying

How does one keep a love alive
A life that one loves
A life one calls its own
Rooted in contentment and bliss
Like the wide-eyed sunflower facing
the glaring sun

The power to choose is fear conquered
Stillness invites silence to come in
Silence answers life’s uncertainties
Loving life is giving life
Giving life is being
As the poet unfolds his heart and mind
Loving life
Is like breathing in God’s breath

Inner Child

2006-12-09T21:44:00.000-08:00

Look at the sky
The stars are up high
Like pearls in the sky
I wonder why

Look at the sky
The moon is up high
It shines so bright
It lights up the night

Look at the sky
The sky is up high
Today I can play
To make my day

Look at the sky
The clouds are up high
The shapes are many
I see my kitty

Look at the trees
The flowers and the bees
They grow each day
And colorful in May

Look at the sea
The shells are plenty
The sand is white
The day is bright

A paradise spell

2006-12-09T21:43:00.000-08:00

Shortly I met new faces
The household of Arts Magnate
How can time be wrong
Another day extended
Made life worth living
Opening new doors
Laughter echoed with nature
Chants and dances gelled
Soul soared in heights
Closer to the stars, beside our dreams
In a sky crowned by the halo of
celestial moon
The waves murmured in awe
The clouds never stopped dancing
In the lullaby of a bamboo flute
The open air pampered the city – choked
skin pores
Salt water mixed with the sweet smell
of warm bodies
Hazel nut coffee brewed the morning

Peace … for the MNLF

2006-12-09T21:42:00.000-08:00

Cradles the dreams of the land
Where blood pours in the bosom of true hearts
Nearing its dawn
The fight continues
We will never allow it to die
Awake as we are before the blinding
Daylight of uncertainties
For the day is just to start
We begin with a brave heart
The end is just the beginning
Only when we are ready to stand for
The good of all
Shall we begin to really understand
That peace will not begin
Somewhere else in a corner of a tall Building
Or in the halls of congress
Where great minds shed utterances of disgrace
The body may soon turn to earth
The old man may never turn his head
The seal of the eagle will forever remain
Mounted on the wall of many disguises
We shall leave the noble legacy
That we fought for the people
We meet again in the graveyard
We have fought a thousand battles
In the end it may not matter to win
As we Now start peace within our doorstep

Longing for the Dream Maker…

2006-12-09T21:40:00.000-08:00

Sweet memories of your
Candid gentle voice
Run like the trickles of sand
Inside the hour of significance
So vivid as the strand
Of your shiny long black hair
Soul gazing in between
The full moon and the star dust
A soul dance of no coincidence
Meeting of minds sublime
Not an accident in time
Let the giver offer love
To an open heart
Shall it rest the restless
As the waves of the ocean bear witness
To the bold sweet nothings
A night to remember
The dream maker’s wish
A pure omen shoots the dark night
A star falls in the lap
Of the beloved
What dreams may come in the rain

The Purest

2006-12-09T21:38:00.001-08:00

Contains nothing but itself
It appeals to everyone
Like the flower, sun and trees
It is just
As it ought to be
What makes sense in the world
Is it the heart that claims rightly
I no longer push for what there is
The flower blossoms in the midst of
Mud
For it’s meant to be
Let life flow as it may
Leading a much awaited music
Everyday opens like a page
Bringing newness each moment
How can one miss such beauty
The heart is as pure when it’s happy

I am who I am

2006-12-09T21:38:00.000-08:00

I am the sun
Heated up constantly
Keeping life alive
Laughing harder
Loving more

I am the moon
In my sleep
Distant last dreams surround me

I am the leaf
Falling
Preparing for
Newness
In springtime

I am the tree
Rooted in my truth
I cease not to grow
I age to define beauty

I am earth
I change
Yet remain the same

I am air
Always moving
Touching every
Part of life

I am water
Flowing through
Drowning hard
Corners

I am fire
Pain in silence burns
Silent pain ignites
Letting go of pain

I am time
Burning the guilt of past
Letting go the fear of the future

I am space
One with everyone
Connected to the vastness
Of one spirit

I am nothing
I come alone empty
I leave alone empty
I am full and noting
Nothingness is fullness

Awakening

2006-12-09T21:37:00.000-08:00

Emanating clear sky
Touches a deep blue ocean
Downpour of sweet rain
Song of a swan

Lotus flower unfolding
Earth flower everywhere
Butterflies hovering
Each one has a place

Everything has a purpose
Everyone has a role to play
The master is the self
The heart, the soul
The truth is ‘I’

The soul shines
My life is here and now
This is reality
I deserve to live
An even happy life

The Kid

2006-12-09T21:35:00.001-08:00

I am wondering
What it is like to grow
And be an adult
I can only tell
When I move forward
And forget the fun

I’m just a kid
Who cries a lot
Many endless tantrums

I can say no without fear
I ask many questions
I dare try
Fail
And try again

I know only of fun
I know nothing of fear
I am full of innocence
My restlessness
Is loved by all
All supportive and cautious eye
Staring at me
I am the apple of their eye
No time keeps me idle
Everytime is new
And exciting
The day is tired
But I am not
There seems to be a bounty of time
A lot to do and
A little to waste

I am easy with my heart
I am clean with my dealings
I kick my legs when I am in protest
I dance when I am in joy
I sleep when I am tired
I pout my lips when I am annoyed
I crumple my bed and jump so high
Until I get out of balance
Biting my nails is my favorite past time
I play skippy, Indian and Popeye
A make believe world is my own
Big people make believe with me too
I can be shy
But no doubt I can do anything
I love to ride the swing
Let loose my hair on the air
Feel the total freedom

I color my world including my face
A face of millions meanings
Only a child can cherish
I show my feelings
I cry with tears
I show all mistakes
I fell secure with my world
No one can let me down
I never run out of ideas
Give me a pen and I draw
Every possible line no one can imagine
I love to paint my dreams in the sand
And play with the ticket of the waves
I see every little detail
And remember everything sorry
I am just a child

Fido

2006-12-09T21:35:00.000-08:00

How funny you are
You leave a place enchanted
Bring joy and magic
Things are either stolen or lost
Something is always missing
What are you capable of
Fair-lady goddess sister
Are you the daughter of great Divine
Maybe you are lost somewhere in time
Or is Mister Right coming your way
What do you choose
Love or company
A good looking stone-head
Or a pure heart with a face so unruly
What about a rich man of stupidity
Or a poor man who reads pedagogy
Let me guess
You want to be happy!
Take a break
Buy a ticket
Fly away
And don’t forget me

Child of the Rock

2006-12-09T21:34:00.000-08:00

You child of the rock
Creating music out of pebbles in the sand
Tossed by the waves of the rough sea
Having lunch under
A canopy of coral stones
Through the eyes of a stranger
Celebrating a day’s life of a hermit crab
Caressing shells of different designs
A childlike affinity with nature
Body touching and kissing rocks
Life of joyful innocence
Crawling underneath
A titled rock sculpture
Brushing belly with the waves and sand
Lovers holding hands
Playful nuances around the cove
A day’s boat ride around the island
Laughter breaks the stillness of a solitary island
With the sound of singing waves
A sweet soul for company
On a warm Sunday afternoon
This is life in Talikub island

What dreams may come…

2006-12-09T21:33:00.000-08:00

Life has gone somewhere
Imagine the path
Leading to sleep
And rising
What dreams may come?
Prayers to game gods
Upon rising in the morning
The day light shines
The soul lingers
To the new day
A treasure again found
We are products
Of our minds
Wishes fade compared
To the starkness of reality
What dreams may come?
Pray to your game gods
The salvation of your vain soul

The game continues
The god watches
Upon illusions
Life has gone wrong
Darkness surrounds the wakeful
The brave never give up
Sometimes when you win
You lose
What dreams may come?
Life goes on one after the other
Never ceases to find soul mates
What dreams may come?
It dwells in the recesses of your soul
In dark
Or day

Take a pic

2006-12-09T21:32:00.001-08:00

Captured stillness
Stolen moments
Shared secrets
Mounted life

Looking at the pictures
Takes you back in time
Closer to the truth
One with the Divine

Life is simple
Take it as it is
Miss not the smallest
For it may look the best

It takes a heart
To appreciate beauty
It is the unknown
That commands serendipity

Time is short
Moods ever changing
Faces smiles and cry
Start here and gone

No moment is the same
Soul never sleeps
Loving more
Doing less

Sweet kisses everywhere
Hugs here and there
Lovers walk and talk
Promises for a lifetime

Fool not the self
Clean fun anyone
Bottles are empty
Heads gone weary

Don’t be deceived by what you see
From the outside
Looking for beauty
Look now
It is there in front of you

Oh well, take a picture
Try and shoot
The moment may be gone
Now is your chance

Look closely
It seems empty
Feel deeper, take a deep breath
Capture the essence

Blue Moon Bathing

2006-12-09T21:32:00.000-08:00

The artist lulls the lovers of life
Under the many faces of the moon
The evening brings back the feeling of
Disenchanted engagement with city life

A mountain sings a thousand songs
The moon rises from the south
Lighting up the faces of mountain lovers
The waterfalls play a masterful cadence from the distance
Like a routine tempo of dancing footwork
Reassuring us of the bounty of nature

From moonrise to moonset
The soul refuses to sleep
And lets no moment to slip away
Once upon a blue moon
Let there be marriage of the minds
Of lovers of life
For whosoever come together
In the birth of a blue moon
Are destined to share a lifetime

The day was well spent with nature’s
Playground by the falls
An underground river cave exploration
Added delight to the adventure

Laughter echoed on the hills
White the canopy of fog rests on the mountain floor
The fireflies were as carefree as the May cicadas
Murmuring their equally measured sonatas

The third night

2006-12-09T21:31:00.000-08:00

Up on a hill
Slowly a moon creeps
Above the horizon
Rising for the third time
Friends come together
Laughter binds the hearts
My good Lord, I’m having a temperature rise
Snuggled inside my sleeping bag
Covered all over
Warming my aching bones and limbs
The rain falls a thousand cries
A river sings from the foot of the mountain
The falls hums the song of the mountain deities
I still long to see the falling star
Wishing
Under a full moon

Life

2006-12-09T21:28:00.000-08:00

My breath
My reality
My dreams
Dancing with eternity

I move with meaning
I join the force of creation
As I truly honor my existence
For this is part of a cycle a journey
Never ending

As I journey
Beyond what I could define
Things turn out to the right
I wonder sometimes
What makes life so accurate
Every moment gives
A lesson

This is a journal of my flawless mind
All my fears
My sighs
And my lies
A create them all
I spoil my mind with fears
What should have been said is finished
Then the hearts shall rest
This lifetime is too short to be tarnished by rage and hatred
We cannot continue hurting each other

Some days
Nothing seems to matter
Shall I channel my thoughts to God
Or I simply keep them to myself
What is the greatest gain

How can I master the art of living and dying
Insurmountable energy has been wasted
Played around so much
And cried a solitary scream
All kinds of talents were granted
Good things have been experienced
How can this make difference in ones life
The real meaning of BEING is my battle-cry

I cannot go on
Without understanding my purpose
My greatest secret is not hidden
Because secret is what they know not
But what is special about me untouched
Where the mind feels and the heart thinks
This is the oasis of gladness that steals pain
I will wait until hearts are no longer
Hurt and minds are healed

What pleases the heart
Compels action and
Shapes circumstances
My life is all I have
I am never the same
Because I am one
And different

Camiguin

2006-12-09T21:27:00.000-08:00

A clear night sky watches
The whole milky way stands witness
When your hand touches mine
Looking for the Southern Cross
And I allow the chance
A huge fist dared to touch
That even a butterfly
Can land at your fingertips
The sun was so alive
Merges with a playful shape of the moon
The stars awaken us in the night with no rain
A pair of rainbows painted the horizon
A beautiful omen that ruled simple hearts
How fast and short was a moment
When you stole my heart
And tickled my funny bone
When you kissed your finger
And planted it on my forehead
Our being together was like a dream
Oh no, do not go away
I still want to paint you
In the canvass of my life
I almost wanted to play fire
In the middle of the sand bar
So barren and white
Not even a tree breaks the ground
Facing the awesome volcanic island
Like a woman full of deep secrets
A few chosen words you spoke
Are like a part of a shy serenade in the making
A lullaby for the hearts of strangers
And words are sometimes not relevant
For the hearts find a way to understand
When we dramatically let our hair down
A celebration with two shots of calming tequila
While the bad luck goes away
Let the evening dance some more and beg time to stop
While the wind in a hurry finds its way home
In the bosoms of married minds
We touched with our feet on the ground
Under the enchantment of heaven
Peeping through the thick garden of clouds
The gentle waterfalls and the pool of hot springs
Of refreshing water that gave peace and grandeur
Listening to your name taken
From the foot of the mountain
The heart is about to burst
With contained inspired laughter
While you rest inside the tent
And in your deep sleep
I offer you the songs of love
Like the strip of cloth closely wrapped around my body
Thanks for letting me see again the sunshine
With your sweet breath keeping me safe
I will treasure your boldness
And the memory of sweet nothings

Ripe masterpiece for Kublai

2006-12-09T21:25:00.000-08:00

I am who I am
A mind of no boundaries
My fingers extend fearless lines
Painting the portrait of my being
When life is of no colour
Breath ceases its natural flow
I move on to find the higher self
Like gathering every piece of broken glass
Putting them together to create a man
With a wholesome attitude
Letting go of the old prejudices and mental sets
I know what I want
I do it with a brave heart
Like the waves in the ocean shaping the stones
I work with hands full of silver bangles
A masterpiece of every place that lives in my memory
I never tire of my search for the bettertruth
When can I possibly go wrong
The heart is many sparks of freedom
Like the fire that never dies
I abide no law and fear no mistake
Making peace with inner voice in
The bosom of my soul
Like the volcano I erupt at no definite time
Opening the windows of the third eye
Free am I
Not like the many
Swayed by the whirlwind of ordinary life
I stand in the middle of the storm
Keeping myself company

The night I opened my soul

2006-12-09T21:24:00.000-08:00

Art
My first
Painted experience
Mounted
On the white wall
Unsigned

No identity
No name
How much
A price
To pay

My soul
For sale
Welcome
To my life’s exhibit

Painting a poem

2006-12-09T21:22:00.000-08:00

Painting a poem
My poetry keeps me young…
I paint to enter nothingness…

If the world is a huge playground
then life is a game
I play every moment
I win some
I lose some
I always learn
A lesson
Tough easily forget

I draw to ease my pain
I laugh with my paint brush
My paints cry on the canvass

I write to ease my pain
I laugh with my pen
I make my mind a friend

I speak in words
I love in my heart
I think in my mind
I listen in my soul
I talk to God to keep my quiet.

War

2006-12-09T21:19:00.000-08:00

Let the war begin
So the faithful
Shall honor their god
By dying like mujahedeens

Let families be destroyed
So that pain and misery
Becomes a everyday meal for
Children
Who will never know their parents

Let lovers choose insanity
To brave the solitude of monogamy
And lament to complexity of extramarital fantasies
So that separation is an option they marry

Let the poet stop writing
So lips will no longer be used for kisses
And flowers will never picked for ladies
Then love and death join the war of the roses

Let the visionary shut the eyes of the future
So dreams cease to creep over one’s sleep
While the philosopher
Shall stop asking
For even the saints and sages
Cannot stop the great war

Let the protagonist
Believe in the enemy
So the war can begin
And the people of the earth
Shall never forget what leaders
Are capable of doing

Let the radicals go home to their wives
While the deities are sleep
So they can have a good fuck
As an antidote to uselessness

Let anonymity live in the hearts of people
So that neighbors shall come and go without a name
Then laughter shall be kept inside the closet
For historians to discover in the saddest times

Soulmate

2006-12-09T21:18:00.000-08:00

Reinventing a relationship
Is like losing countless battles
To be able to learn
How to win a great war
Victory in the lap of the beloved
There’s a price to pay

Tonight I join the Iraqi forces
In their fate to die for the love
Of their god and constitution
I die like the mujahedden
This is the night I will never forget
I wish Ella Fritzgerald
And Louise Armstrong
Would not stop singing my song
I fell like the most beautiful
And vulnerable woman
In the face of the earth
Waiting for my lover to come home
Like the Papalina I of the great Trojan war
Is there a love worth dying for in this lifetime?

Anonymity

2006-12-09T21:17:00.000-08:00

Anonymity
son of irony
bless your mother
for she knows not
what she did
to a man’s heart
made of a philosopher’s stone
her days are over
but the scars of indifference
in a child’s heart
grow into anonymity

I pray to rumi, kahlil gibran and
Pablo neruda
and other great poet
that the depth and warmth
in their wisdom
find their way
to reconnect a man’s male ego
to pure vulnerability
make a man understand acceptance
without reason
better still
appreciate intimacy for love
learn to thrust
grow with openness for the
unknown
for there are thousand possibilities

son of the universe
let the woman advanced for her age
mark your palm with love
and walk with you to find the path
closer to your heart
so that the blessings made by a
small sharp stone
shall create healing ripples
in the pond of incompatibility

let the woman
write more poetry
until the man who lost
a soul
finds his way home
to love
and to live

son of mythology
let the alchemist
turn the stone into gold
let the man’s empty heart
become a willing receptacle
to innocence and spontaneity

lovers of music, books and movies
allow the lesson of love
be thy guiding map
to reveal a profound exchange
of the simple everyday truths
and so the woman as the nurturer
saves a man from insecurities
for feeling less of a lover
for not being able to reciprocate

I pray once more
that the man shall not take
the woman’s affection
into his head
for it belongs
to the heart
Pizza turns cold

just in time for the
middle east war
anonymous intimacy started
when strangers took
each other’s hand
and risked the nearness

the romance was an adventure
too short
that may have ended
before it started
feverish but lavished
with trills

let love prevail even
in the midst of war
should love end
shall the war start

this poem is offered
just like the flowers upon your feet
i make peace with you
and myself so
tonight I can sleep

poetry can be a potent weapon

that may kill a lover
give birth to sarcasm
and awaken the witchcraft
called indifference

oh romeo
hear my heart
that wish you only well
nothing else
my poetry is my
gift of love to you
and not meant to poison
your soul

should you blamed for such
straight forwardness
let me take the crime and
punishment
and may the lessons from such
candid expressions
make strangers even the
least of friends
in war
love has ended
butterflies and
tension come alive

it hurts to hurt
it is grave to feel insignificant
my ego self has now

become a woman
vulnerable to man’s judgments
waiting for the lover
to come for dinner

let my heart bleed once more
let me die another death
let me grieve over love and
for matters of the heart

if this means to become
fully human

it is hard to imagine
that life is full of irony
and love is tragedy
as the pizza turns cold

i dare not to speak my heart again
for fear triggered and
my heart turn numb
my pen is crying dry tears
but I pray to be brave
to embrace the indifference

i can only wish
that each one shall find
the love to cherish
in life and in war

A Kiss

2006-12-09T21:16:00.000-08:00

in the laboratory of love
the poet chooses
to search for the essence
its purpose, the truth
even the bitter truth
the scientist (may choose to)
take a chance
for everyday is an experiment

for a moment in that room
full of various textures of life
the poet succumbs willingly
to the many kisses
offered by the celtic son
who made himself famous
into a man of marine science

that night was succulent and intimate
distant yet passionate
with fish talks in between
a time to chill out
with no great expectations

life has to continue its course
leaving behind
even the most meaningful moments
a young mind has to move on
with his ego, ambitions and endless
preference
some relationship
have ended before even started
on second night
sometimes passion ends up in bed
shortly with a headache
whatever it may be
that night
was one of those
when one can say
it’s great
to be fully human

Pneumonia

2006-12-09T21:15:00.000-08:00

Oh beloved
In your sleep
Let me dance in your dreams
to scare your pneumonia away
for a while The Piano
entertain the passing rainclouds
until I return to your side
for a thousand more kisses
like the strong winds
lovers shall conquer the unknown
so strangers brave the intimacy
unleash the forces
that abound in all human hearts
the silence in this windy night
reminds lovers of open-ended
passion
surrounded by gods and goddesses
residing in a solitary wooden
honeymoon palace on a hilltop
overlooking the grandeur of
Camiguin Island
where stormy nights bring the lovers
closer as human blankets
under the eternal stars
beside the first quarter moon
wishing for the love force
to join the right season
where lovers bloom
like the spring flowers
ready for harvest
open for love…

Alchemy of love

2006-12-09T21:14:00.000-08:00

Like the falling leaf
touching the lily in a pond
destiny brought me back
to your hand
just as the tarot card
revealed the unknown
we were gently guided and blessed
by the omens of a storm
the volcanic hot spring
favored our shivering skin
while we listened to the sweet
tete-a-tete at the foot
of a mountain
The Jedi’s fearless, uncompromising
heart is rare
so free, that even the loneliest
woman is not free spared
let his alchemy teach me more
to free myself
from the fear of losing and
the dangers of owning
and when some other day
you chose to deserve me
please come early,
so in this lifetime
together we can share
more love, music and tea…

Maktub

2006-12-09T21:13:00.000-08:00

the first day break of Ramadan
on a new moon in November
the night has the darkest sky
the night I met a Jedi…
A man of the treehouse who
speaks four languages
and nothing less but love
whose passion for his guitar
and music is greater than
a man’s wife…
nothing compares under a
crescent moon
where one tasted the desert
with a frozen date
from the dunes of Tunisia
which for years watched
caravans depart Africa
the music charmed the soul
jammed with African drums
mourned with the desert
chanted with the breath of
the world
until the laventer begged the
Moors to listen
it takes a determined heart to
realize dreams
like a Jedi fulfilling his destiny
building the nest is a master’s
work
Noradin’s home for his true self
and a temple for his god…
one night was a glimpse of a
lifetime
a drink for the tired spirit
a message for a weary soul
a gift for life
worth living…
Maktub!

Pablo

2006-12-09T21:11:00.000-08:00

listening to your poems
rests a smile on my face
the lines remind me of
lovers in movies
where one moment stops
so the heart breaths awhile
familiar line speaks
of matters only hearts
understand

I may no longer endure
to wait for the sunrise
all I know my head
shall rest in your arms
to celebrate the cold windy night
door slams to and fro
in protest
for the winds from the sea
carry with it their temper
that ignites the lovers’ desire
who shall seek the company
of our soft lips
and hold you closer
so you may chase away the cold
and in my sleep I will dream of
no one else
sweet tongues
like yours
are rare
if only you existed in my time
if only you crossed the country
of my birth

The night the sky cried

2006-12-09T21:08:00.000-08:00

I wish I were a butterfly
In the middle of the desert
So I can melt
Reduced to speak of dust
Roasted by the blinding sun
Grilled to powder pigment
So that I may join the stones
Then color the sand bed
With my embedded agony
Destined to grace the earth
To mark a lover’s exit

The sky poured like whimpering child
As if crying for me
That brought torrid rain shower
And blanketed the moon
About to burst in the full bloom
But the house was dark
My disturbed sleep

Was a toss of air here and there
Right to left, South and East
My mind not feeling
Not wanting
I’m cured once more

My beloved chose
A worthy star
To mark the registered pages
While I’m tasked to make
Everyone happy
In the banquet among great friends
On his wedding day
I’m freed from the cycle of needing and wanting
So this day shall be the last
I ever think of him

bad air

2006-08-17T21:51:00.000-07:00

the morning rain
was inviting
and the garden
is a fresh green workshop
when the soil is soft
but the body wish to stay in bed
and stay motionless
half eyes open
till the rain stop
but my ovaries are screaming
to get soaked
so the farmer’s hand
touch the dark earth
so pineapple, lemon grass and ginger
can start a new season

soaked in the rain
revolting abdominal pains
painful bad air
run around like a horse
on the loose
hyperventilating and
labored breathing
reflex, ointments and balms,
green hibiscus, garlic and guava
three cups of coffee
no relief
unbearable
reproductive pains
ended up in bed
with room service
a convergence of
rain, pain, bruce and jane
on their honeymoon

empty shell

2006-08-17T21:45:00.000-07:00

i felt a sudden
emptiness
in my womb
my shadow self
has awakened
it revealed to me
my emptiness
of being a woman
for not having born
a child
like a dead dry shell
empty of life

zen garden

2006-08-17T21:41:00.000-07:00

i am blessed with a space
only god can enter
for it is only in the moment
of solitude
i can fully understand
the meaning of my life

relationships makes my
mercury rise and fall
creates ripples in my mind
and make my heart leap

this morning
the rain has awakened me
with the a strange feeling
of longing yet uncertain

the stillness around me
has captured my restless mind
thinking of a man
far and distant

oh great goddess of fertility
nourish my ground
so i make my self useful as a woman
and make my relationship work

oh great goddess of power
open my heart
and make me worthy
of deep love

butterflight

2006-08-17T21:35:00.000-07:00

(in honor of minerva miraval)

the butterflies haunt me
i let the woman die
with a headache
so i may free
my fears

my pen doesn’t know me anymore
it has kept distant
for my heart runs out of liquid
to nourish my pages

i care about love
but love has watered my eyes
i may step back a while
so the man can claim his space

i dare not speak my mind
it defies logic
weakens the sick
kills one’s dream

mothers may survive
if they have learned
to love enough
so children may live

i cry once more
to share the joy of a mother
i can never be yet
in honor of my unborn children

tears are my children
for a woman like me
may have short memory
like a butterfly that shortly die
after the flight

i may be the lover
one can never have
i may be the mother
not yet meant to be
we might be the love
that is yet to live

i may not see stars in the sky tonight
i may be soaked in sudden rain
i may walk miles after miles
i may be dwarfed in the city of tall buildings
i may feel alone walking
amidst the millions
anonymous
i may never speak to my father again
for he is now beyond speech
i may have never been so drunk
to know not what is sober
but like the stars from a distance
my eyes can touch the sky

seconds

2006-08-17T21:10:00.000-07:00

as the clouds sweeps through
sagada is never the same
at the birth of a double rainbow
the artist breathes new life to his lungs
as he takes his last pill
as antidote to a tubercoli virus
the changing sky
gives birth to images
mounted in a still shot
life immortalized
captured in a second

thoughts

2006-08-17T21:06:00.000-07:00

a quiet space
nourish the pages
coffee appetizes the mind
a pen on one hand
makes a writer’s life
write so many lives

thoughts are born
like children
to sustain us

child

2006-08-17T21:02:00.000-07:00

my soul craves for

simple joys

wild

creative

insanities

outmoded

outdated

outlandish

exaggerated

animated

a child

a tribute to a beautiful man

2006-08-17T20:55:00.000-07:00

the woman child wakes up
with the roosters calling her
to find her center
face-to-face
with the great sun rising
from the east side of the endless ocean
above the off shore waves
the sea sit still
while GOD paints the morning sky
with pastel hues
that speaks many languages
and lure lovers to come to the island
and so dance floors
will never be empty
and conversations until the early morning
entertains the ocean waves
while the stars await
the lovers for a deep
passionate kiss
listen to the silence...
the language of her God
the language of her soul
the language of her self
today she chooses to liberate her heart
and speak her truth
so relationships can be born
out of pure vulnerability
so the passion of venus and mars
can celebrate the union
where a man honors the breasts
that nourishes the new born
where the woman cradles the adam
between her legs
where intimacy is an orgasm
of sacred romance
and breakfast is as sumptuous
as the banana in bliss
she again takes the risk
so this lifetime
becomes a celebration
of loving,
living
and learning

this morning
is a new beginning
she chooses to keep the man
in her memory box inside her heart
for she holds him sacred
she prays to be part
of thy healing process
as she heals herself
like two pillars separated by the ocean
two hearts stand
sharing the same sky
sharing the same love
like the papalina of the trojan war
weaving and unweaving the threads of her heart
keeps her peace,
guards the territory of love
as she awaits for her lover
to come home

like the sunset
you will be watched from a distance
so the woman can see the whole painted sky
like the birds of the sea
she will fly within a distance
so together both can spread each wings
learn to fly and soar to the heavens
let the ocean be God's loving hands
to wash away thy fears and pains
she leaves the island with a whole heart
as she keeps you whole
like the fisherman going to the shore
for an early catch
she rows her boat towards
the direction of unconditional love
co-creating in the process
of dying from within

i honor the gift of friendship
for this is meant to last for a lifetime
let the space in between us
be God's love
so each day
is a healing experience
as we make ourselves
truly deserving of
loving relationships

I say thank you to the start of this new journey.
My life is going to manifest
great changes for self-transformation
and inspire others to do the same.
I will be the channel of abundance,
happiness, creativity, adventure,
enthusiasm, courage, joy, love
and enlightenment
As I continue to extend
God’s love in grace, beauty and wisdom.

I am a gift of the universe
The child of God
Who will be the inspiratrice
To awaken the divine.

My path will bring me closer
to my truth
to my heart
and to my purpose

I am guided by the unlimited wellspring of omens
and blessings as my canopy of protection
to realize my dreams

I say thank you
To the great love force
From the giver of all life
For opening my heart
To love.

I am the channel of God
I am loved
I am love

always on my mind

2006-08-17T20:46:00.000-07:00

freshness in the morning
stillness in the sky
quiet of the ocean
always in my mind

morning without sunshine
moist from the rain
dewdrops on the grass
always on my mind

living in the island
is a game of sun and clouds
ocean breaks and rise
always on my mind

awesome sunsets and moonsmile
cold mountain spring
volcanic murmurs hot springs
always on my mind

mountains over sand bars
sunrise through rice fields
cascading waterfalls
always on my mind

mangroves by rocky shores
white and ebony sand beaches
camiguin island paradise
always on my mind

coral reefs and sea turtles
seven greens in the oceans
rise and fall of tides
always on my mind

smiles of gentle people
endless barrio fiestas
sweet lanzones in season
always on my mind

thank you betsy

2006-08-17T19:56:00.000-07:00

Pinoy Kimchi Society

2006-07-08T22:58:00.000-07:00

The kimchi flavored air of Korea
brought by the young and brave souls
has added heat to the volcanic lava
and scandalous joy of acrobatic performances
never less of a wild island cry
as hot as the red chili paste
as frantic as the Camiguin sea
as tasty as the smell of kim

with laughters carved on the walls
chi and orin shall rock the dance floor
for suji will not say no to a limbo
sujin learns to chacha
added to the high kicks of hwany
Jung's gentle hip swing
and the stick dance of lee
salsa shall find fides
with the flying stunts of Na as finale
shall compose a memory
of thousand colors for Song

the island shall look for you
and your candid raw talents
that nourished the alcoholics
and the lovers of nature
come again to camiguin
so the playground shall again
celebrate the kind of fever
that can make mercury rise
so smokers may forget about nicotin
and drinkers can sleep soundly
without the beer and gin

my heart will never be the same again
for it has grown bigger again
with so much love
and the grace of friendship
shall keep me safe
even when you are far away
and smell like kimchi

succulent woman

2006-06-22T08:41:00.000-07:00

woman
your hands hold the sacred
like the weavers of fabric
you weave your life
with constant grace
still, yet dignified

woman
you are honored
for having and being
aging gracefully
while the heart
like the fountain spring
grow unguarded
bubbling with unlimitedness
creating ripples of change

woman
your heart has opened
the secret
standing your ground
where beauty resides
the pure,
the virgin
that innocence
the mover
the shaker
with integrity in your actions
gave birth to a succulent
wild woman
you are
now tken seriously

woman
you have invited love
as you let loose
of your ego
and self-centeredness
as you safeguard self-interest
as the connector of positive peace
that admirable courage
to start a new
embracing the everyday rituals of family life
that has awakened
the bond,
the element
that gives a family
a reason for living

woman
you have mended
the broken pieces
so now you free
your self
from hurting relationships
so that woman that
becomes the mother
shall give birth
to the sons and daughters
that will carry with them
the stories, culture and traditions
but most especially the love
that sustains
the great civilization of
man

woman
you now free your self
from your name and fame
that may limit others
to see you from the inside
for you are the
pure manifestation
of the hands of the divine
may this birth become
a trademark of a woman
who showed people
the greatest fashion
of loving the self
as you entitle your self
to become what you want to be

woman
you are the risk taker
that surrendered yourself
to a commitment
of the sacred union
of marriage
or as a mother peace
in the absence of royal jelly
in the advent of hot and cold flushes
let god be the space
when words are not spoken
when beds are quiet
when pillows are distant
when rooms are separate
when wives are wanting more
when husbands are restless

woman
as a gift certificate
you are entitled to endless
multiple orgasms
so the woman in you
starting a life taken seriously
feels alive
…for loving once again
embracing the passion to serve
and finding newness in loving
is what matters
and after opening and closing your legs
the menopause experience becomes a
new beginning
for being a woman taken seriosly

God’s breathe

2006-06-22T07:34:00.000-07:00

oh great son of darjeeling
let me join you in the moment
armed with a poem and chai
from a distant mountain
in the himalayas
let my heart echo the dream
of every woman
so the snows preserve
the human cells from aging
for women are needed
when they are stronger
raging with power
to warn the
species of restless men
so the miracle of life
inside the testicles
are not running like an ambulance
in an emergency panic

in my morning meditation
i surrendered
to the small bubbles of oxygen
coming out of a underwater fountain
it was a god in a bubble
that create ripples
of pure energy
that gave me strength
so I can be an instrument
to bring back love in the hearts
to bring back beauty in the eyes
so I can be one with the rain
and melt in the sun

last night
I felt small
My heart broke loose
I melted in the pure energy
As a spectator to a gold performance
That only power dancers
Who acquired the discipline for years
Can transcend the ordinary
Into something divine
The nakedness is purity
The stillness is power
The dance is synchronized
In god’s breath

the traveler

2006-06-22T07:32:00.000-07:00

To the warrior
who
has walked a thousand steps
lived a thousand lives
fought a thousand battles
closer to the truth
closer to your heart
closer to the old man
closer to the highest wisdom
god has blessed you
for you are
the one
true spirit
that seeks no glory
other than the Divine
let this seventh day
of the seventh month
of your auspicious birth
mark the day on earth
when the great transformation
happens
as you start it
within
keep your quiet
for in the hardest times
that will give you company
keep on walking
as you make the path
by walking
your mind
shall set your feet free
your body may shiver
as the raw food
cleanses every living cell
and dissolves every
life-threatening ego
your heart will lead you
for it is connected
to the soul of the world
the grandmother’s thread
shall hold you sacred
and keep you safe
so in your journey
to zero point
as you spiral back to the center
of the flower of life
blessings be upon you
as you keep
the ancient knowledge and
the great secrets
that shall be your food
in the course of
dramatic changes
towards your
self transformation
to make your self ready
to meet
and
be
the
ONE

made of flowers

2006-06-22T07:31:00.000-07:00

once upon a morning
stillness
but no air
everything stopped
thoughts are slow
the sky is a living canvass
untouched
pure white
new wash of silver
as if God
erased the clouds
cleaned the heavens
so mankind
shall reinvent a new
life of passion
as intense as the sun
that will give courage
to women

behind the music of Sebastian
my heart melt melts once more
as a I shed ripples of tension
and inhale the first lesson of the year
letting go
I am
Only then left with love

As vibrant as nature calls
The heart leaps
To a new beginning
Of loving, giving, and being

My heart is made strong
So it can embrace
Bitter engagements
And invite deeper relationships

My friend told me
I am made of flowers
For these are my favorite food
So let my sweat like nectar
Nourish every being I meet
And so my eyes
Sparkle like gummamelas in summer
Then my hands are polished
With creative blooms in all season
So it is loved even more
Where beauty resides
From sunrise to sundown

a kiss on Tala's forehead

2006-06-22T07:29:00.000-07:00

A kiss on Tala’s forehead
May these words
Fulfill your curriculum
For keeping life alive
Through poetry

if i may put it simply
you are like the chinese pencil
sketching life on canvass of a young girl
holding a sunflower close to her heart
allowing the petals to kiss
the soft skin on her forehead
leaving a blissful gaze
to what the closed eyes see

the words growing from your ancient mouth
float through like a singing chime
turn dullness into a dynamic movement
a spontaneous rage from lightness to madness
for it does not take you a second
to bring the house laughing upside down
giving life to words spoken
which maybe not like the younger tala
who quietly contained herself under
the rhetoric of a prolific husband

more often on a day’s work
you linger with the distinct print of a typewriter
puts your potent mind into print
no less of a legendary invocation
to a writer yearning for due
acknowledgement
an act of kindness
you shared with me ‘those-were-the-days’
when you paint davao pub houses
a happy hour of poetry
leaving empty glasses of a stranger
brimming with a new experience
out of your persistence to bring in
a brand of tutelage for the common tao
to appreciate the poet and poetry
by the old and young
by the famous and ordinary

a poet is no longer made
one lives vividly in small experiences
enjoying the warmth shot of a brandy
and sees every shy grin and fake utterances
remembers every detail of a simple
acquaintance
for life is not a bid party
but is like a simple key in every blade of grass

as years paint your hair gray
and mark graceful lines on your face
a few more teeth may loose their roots and dangle free
but the spirit of a poet, a painter,
a mother, a lola
a multi-disciplinary creature like you
continues to grow everyday
soaring the great heights
as you inspire other people
to create new road maps

allow us to keep this memory of you
not left hanging on the wall
for a cheap pegged price
but to remember you as an inspiration
the “muse” as erika jong puts it
that breathes with us as time goes by
thank you
for making us experience
a masterpiece
such as you
for there is no easy way
and it takes a lifetime
just like wine aged to perfection
that will forever linger in the taste buds
of the living

loving myself

2006-06-22T07:23:00.000-07:00

iam
reclaiming my lost passion
rediscovering my brush strokes
taming my hands
acknowledging my rhythm
accomplishing my mission
learning to love
freeing myself of a dis-ease
giving birth to a new set of ovaries
healing my uterus
slowing dowm my walk
living my talk
embracing the child in me
roconciling with my inner beauty
allowing god to breathe in life to my soul

MindaNOW

2006-06-22T07:03:00.000-07:00

half awake
half asleep
i see my own people
speaking in
different tongues
tracing their ancient roots
offering diverse prayers
to gods and goddesses
they call themselves
different names
different tribes
sitting in one circle

i pray that
this may be
the day
that our identity
becomes a name
never spoken
never heard
for it remains
divine
as sacred as the sun
that chooses no one
sees no color
but all under heaven
the sons of the earth
shall understand
the same language
for it is true to each one
that we come from
one origin
and so we
burry the fear
that we no longer
know our culture
for deep in our hearts
we know
we abide one and
the same
universal law
so may the great love force
shall melt the differences
and lead us back to the truth
so we make our lives
a truly
work of art

salut to jenny

2006-06-22T07:01:00.000-07:00

i love
the wonderful woman in you
for you have been brave enough
to enjoy every corner
every joy
and every sorrow

every broken bits and pieces
that you were able to gather
mend together
so then the woman
may heal inside out

you are my woman
i can never have
but will freely
share with a neighbor
who have loved you
all along
though
you never
thought
loving would
always end up
in bed...

move on...
you are the woman
that you alone can cherish
and no one else
should tarnish
for you know that
you are
special
salute to a friend
who
now mothers the soul
in this rebirth
as a way of saying
thank you
to the great enlightenment

Cremated Canvass

2006-06-22T06:58:00.000-07:00

(a tribute to a great woman artist, Frida Kahlo)
dedicated to the bridge Frida calls LOVE

according to Diego
pain on Frida’s Agonized poetry on canvass
is “acid and tender
as hard as steel
refined as butterfly wings”

sharp as wild cactus
lovable as a smile
as radical as a communist
as passionate as her husband
cruel as the bitterness of life

no love can die
even fueled by disloyalty
raged by a vengeful temperament
a woman’s soul
casted by her will find her own self
made a crippled walk out of a wheelchair
made love to a woman
consumed tequila to win
a grand repertoire of an erotic tango
that can grab a lover home
never to leave less
of a
comrade, a fellow artist, a best friend
but will never be her husband

women after naked women
shall be reborn on a canvass
for as long a Diego is alive
portraits of agony are glorified

what makes lovers endure
endless infidelities
when a fuck is just like a handshake
and cutting a finger nail

it is no longer a fearsome sight
to die in pain on her
favorite heirloom bed beside her panzon
till the canvass on fire
purify Frida and her dreams
and so her ashes shall join
the earth and the rivers
changing its form
again and again
and so she exists
lifetime after lifetime

sailing

2006-06-22T06:56:00.000-07:00

from Camiguin island to Siquijor island
I am carried away
Once more uprooted from
The island of living volcanos
Skirting the white shorelines
Of the visayas
From where I sit
Cebu and Dumaguete appear from a distance
While clouds may hide them
When the sun sleeps
The sight of the island where is was born
Bring shivers of a childhood reverie
A home I don’t call home
A home I left long ago
A home but a home
Calling me to come home

Kublai’s element

2006-06-22T06:55:00.000-07:00

The pain of hands
Is fire and poetry
When it shapes hard steels
Into immortal living symbols
Like the seed
Coming out into life
Breathing the dreams
Of our hearts
Like the goddess
That shall nurture
The child inside each one of us
The story teller
That carries with her
In her bosom
The spring of creativity
The poetry born our of his hands
Like the fairy
Enchanted by the music
Of a lover of life
Immortalized by the hands
Of a man shaped by his own
Principles and indefatigable passion
For Kublai
Is himself
The spirit
That shall awaken us
Or maybe haunt us
To make the ordinary
Unforgettable
Because each one is
Meant
To make the best out
Of oneself
As a gift
To life

The Voice

2006-06-22T06:54:00.000-07:00

Unfamiliar yet intimate
Like a dreamer’s whisper
Rustic like the back country
Among strangers, quiet distinct
A man with many faces
Carrying a young mind
Graceful and eloquent
Come forward with passion
Unpacking beautiful thoughts
Then at times
A soul like yours
Who dared to love
And be loved
Is closer to the truth
For you know your heart

Your idea of life in general
Reflects the desire
To find the center and solitude
You can walk away
Out of the chaos
Unscathed
For you know you have
A purpose

Thy hands shall carry the weak
And heal a lover
And so he may grow old with
A steady relationship
Thy feet shall find the doors
To opportunities
With such a young heart
One can contain a family life
Shared with sacrifice and commitment

After a long journey
The man shall take new risks
Embark on unknown adventures
But shall come home
To a mother’s embrace

Afternoon Rain

2006-06-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

The view outside the window
Is a living canvass
Where mists erases the trails
Of a sunrise
The green mountain
Is a palette of olives, apple green and mint
The blue sky is gone
When the landscapes turned to fire
At the break of the late chilly morning

The cool mountain air
envelopes lovers
who are about to part
the drummer circle
sound the earth’s call
so trees shall stand and withstand
storms and tropical depressions
for a hundred more years
while the moon
in its full glory
form a lace of light
around the mountain like a lullaby
so the wind shall never forget a chant
of our forefathers
for the pride of heirs and forbears

Papaya Mornings

2006-06-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

Seeing colors in the ocean
Gives new hope, vigor and movement
To my idle feet
After two weeks of
Chasing rain with
Bed of shells in a
Black basin as rain catchers
Home buddies cuddle with a book
Review a marathon of movies
When the sea of mist
Is the color of ash and smoke
Awakens the memory
Of the pirates of the Caribbean
And the Black Pearl
Then after a night’s down pour
The sky is a totally new sensation
Yellow flowers are bright bells
Coming out of the sleepy leaves of vine
When the mornings are
Devoted to papayas
A live breakfast
Of enzymes

Pot of gold

2006-06-22T06:39:00.000-07:00

I am writing
As my tribute to a rainbow
That appeared one dreamlike morning
When I saw a rainbow from
End to end, standing on the sea
Right by the glass window
In front of my bed
Speechless,
I stared and stopped
As if a lifetime has passed
That white house by the sea
On Lamma island
Is a pot of gold
A child’s memory box
Of white pebbles and sand
Endless weekend walks
By the shores of China
Such as the sampan ride to the other bordering Islands
choppy winds are inviting
a thick play of waves
made for windsurfers and kayakers
while the rocky sea walls
anchor rock climbers
seeking for a weekend adventure
by the end of the day
Songs of the flower people
Echo the night